Youngstown Playhouse seeks playwrights

Gray Areas

May 2, 2013

Youngstown Playhouse is accepting submissions for its second "Voices of the Valley" New One Act Play Festival.

The festival is designed to showcase the work of local playwrights, and the Playhouse will assign the winning entries to directors who will present staged readings of the plays at the Youngstown community theater on Aug. 2-4. The writers will have an opportunity to participate in the rehearsal process.

New this year will be a category for young writers, open to students in grades 7 to 12.

Judges for the festival will include Cara D. Gipson, James Canacci and Bernie Appugliese.

The deadline for submission is May 31, and there is a non-refundable $10 submission fee. Each playwright only can submit one work. For more information, call the Playhouse at 330-788-8739.

Auditions for actors to perform the selected works are scheduled at 6:30 p.m. June 24 and 25 at the Playhouse.

Kent State University has an impressive guest list for its 43rd commemoration of the May 4, 1970, shootings.

Gwen Ifill, co-anchor of "PBS News Hour" and moderator of "Washington Week," will moderate a panel discussion on the "Historical Significance of May 4 and Visitors Center" from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday at Cartwright Hall's University Auditorium. The May 4 Visitors Center, which opened last year, definitely is worth a visit for those who haven't been there, although I would recommend making a trip to the campus some other time for a visit when it won't be swarming with people.

Oscar-winning writer-director Oliver Stone ("Platoon," "Wall Street") will speak on "History and Memory in Film," focusing on his works that depict '60s-era events. The program starts at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at University Auditorium and will be followed by a reception at 9 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public with limited seating available.

A candlelight march starts at 10:30 p.m. Friday at the Kent State Commons, and programs and speakers organized by the May 4 Task Force will run from 8 to 10 p.m. Friday and noon to 2 p.m. Saturday.

Cleveland may have the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but one area where Pittsburgh tops Cleveland is free summer concerts.

This week the main stage lineup for the Three Rivers Arts Festival was announced along with the summer concert series at Hartwood Acres and South Park.

This year's arts festival, which runs June 7-16 at Point State Park downtown, will features free concerts by Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros (June 7), Ralph Stanley (June 8), Glen Hansard of The Frames and the movie "Once" (June 12) and Airborne Toxic Event (June 15) among others.